Kuala Lumpur - Fancy some Canoodling?

ca·noo·dle (k-ndl) - meaning: 'To engage in caressing, petting, or lovemaking." or "To win over or convince by cajoling or flattering"

Not sure which of the above definitions that the owners of the new-fangled noodle shop, Canoodling at Bangsar Village 2, were referring to when they named this enterprise of theirs. Strategically located across from a Borders outlet, this slickly-packaged noodle spot proved very popular with young adults and families alike.

A peek into their extensive menu showed an amazing range of both traditional and re-interpreted modern versions of Malaysian noodle and rice dishes.

Two items were the most talked-about ones:

- the stir-fried XO Chee Cheong Fun - thick rice rolls (豬腸粉) literally translated as "pig's intestines noodles" because of the shape & resemblance, were fried with spicy HK-style XO sauce (XO 醬) which consisted of dried scallops, dried shrimp, chillis, garlic, onions and dried dace/fish. Chives, egg and a very liberal amount of beansprouts were added to the peppery and very oily stir-fry. OK, maybe KL-lites liked this dish a lot, but it somehow didn't quite appeal to me;

- Hakkasan London noodles - I'm actually a bit surprised here about the unabashed borrowing of the Hakkasan (world's first Michelin-starred Chinese restaurant when it was awarded 1-Michelin star in the London guide back in 2003) brand name. The dish here was a rather Hainanese (rather than Hakka) stir-fried fine glass or "tung hoon" (冬粉) noodles with dace, salted black beans and thinly-sliced bittergourd. I'd never come across this dish during my previous visits to Hakkasan in London but that's a while ago, and it could have been on a more recent menu - but I can't imagine a pork-less version of this rather traditional Hainanese dish. I know for sure that no pork was served in this restaurant as there were quite a few tables of Malay-Muslim diners - and they are *very* particular about "halal" food (more so than Muslims from neighboring Indonesia or Singapore).

Nice place for a quick bite (service is friendly & efficient) with simple no-frills cooking. Not really intended (by their owners) as a serious foodie destination, I'm sure.

Heh. The first meaning is the more common one, I think; even in places with past British influence. Perhaps this place falls into the same general category as that other one you wrote about with the interestingly-named cocktails. :-)

Hmm, the menus on the websites of both Hakkasan locations in London don't have a dish approximating the one you had, not that I can see anyway. I wonder if their management knows about this place...